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Friday, February 27, 2015

“For Tacfarinas, in spite of many repulses, having first
recruited his forces in the heart of Africa, had reached such a pitch of
insolence as to send an embassy to Tiberius, demanding nothing less than a
territorial settlement for himself and his army, and threatening in the
alternative a war from which there was no extrication.” – Tacitus, The Annals, Book III

Friday, February 13, 2015

“‘The prime duty of friends is not to follow their dead with
passive laments, but to remember his wishes and carry out his commands.Strangers themselves will bewail Germanicus: you
will avenge him – if you loved me, and not my fortune.Show to the Roman people the granddaughter of
their deified Augustus, who was also my wife; number her six children: pity
will side with the accusers, and, if the murderers allege some infamous
warrant, they will find no credence in men – or no forgiveness!’His friends touched the dying hand, and swore
to forgo life sooner than revenge.” – Tacitus, The Annals, Book II

Friday, February 6, 2015

The story of Germanicus is one of the great Roman tragedies.While the House of Octavian was consistently
beset by scandals and misfortunes, the Germanicus affair represented a major
turning point in both the reign of Tiberius and the legitimacy of the
Julio-Claudians.Before Germanicus, the
Principate was viewed with respect tinged with fear.After Germanicus, fear became dominant.Before Germanicus, most Romans were at least
willing to give Tiberius a chance.Afterward, they just hoped to survive him.

I knew from the start of the new series that I wanted to cover
the story of Germanicus in some depth.In linking it to the story proper, the closest connection was
Ptolemy.They were both grandsons of
Mark Antony, were roughly the same age, both began their military careers at
the same time, and (as it turned out) spent roughly six years growing up
together in Rome, in the household of Antonia Minor.But in the end, the story of Germanicus is so
powerful and self-contained, that I decided to take a minor detour from the
storyline to give it its due.Not
something I’m planning to do often, but, well…Germanicus!

So this is just a short note to let you know that,
Germanicus aside, the focus of the series will continue to be the descendants
of Mark Antony and Cleopatra.And their
grandson Ptolemy still has a few adventures to come over the next few
decades.All that said, please enjoy
next week’s episode, “Germanicus.”

Friday, January 30, 2015

Synopsis: The death of Octavian, elevation of Tiberius,
and early military careers of Germanicus and Ptolemy.

“Even during
the years when he lived at Rhodes, in ostensible retirement and actual exile,
(Tiberius) had studied nothing save anger, hypocrisy, and secret
lasciviousness.” - Tacitus, The Annals,
Book I

“Yet the
temper of the soldiers remained savage, and a sudden desire came over them to
advance against the enemy: it would be expiation of their madness; nor could
the ghosts of their companions be appeased till their own impious breasts had
been marked with honorable wounds.Falling in with the enthusiasm of his troops, (Germanicus) laid a bridge
over the Rhine, and threw across twelve thousand legionaries.” – Tacitus, The Annals, Book I

Friday, January 9, 2015

Episode B6, Eurus (“East Wind”) represents a milestone of
sorts, in that it took the story from 1 BC to 1 AD.Actually, it’s even a bit more poignant,
since Juba & company were marching around near, or sailing close by, Judea that year.Very “right place,
right time” of them!It also represents
another milestone, in that it’s around the middle of the first story arc of the
series, covering Juba, Selene and Ptolemy of Mauretania.After the first dozen-or-so episode arc is complete, I’ll probably be taking a month
or two off to relax, recoup and prepare for the next story arc.

Episode B6 was also significant for another reason.Episode 36 of the original series left off
with the conquests of Alexander the Great in the late 4th century
BC.Since the current series will be
spending a lot of time in the Near East, I wanted to bring everyone up to speed
on (1) what does the Near East look like now and (2) how did it get that
way from Alexander’s time?There were a
number of possible approaches, ranging from going country by country and giving
a synopsis, to just having the characters “show up” places without giving much historical
background.

My choice was to strike a “middle ground”, starting around
90 BC and projecting each major Near Eastern country both backward and forward.Using this approach, I was able to bring us
up to date with Pontus, Armenia, Media, Parthia, Cappadocia, Judea and Nabatea
– the big Near Eastern players of the day – while also placing incidents related
earlier in the series in a bit more context.And for those who were a bit overwhelmed by the names and dates, just be
glad I didn’t get into Sophene, Commagene, Osrhoene, Cilicia, Bithynia, Iberia,
Lycia or Colchis.You’re welcome!

Eurus will serve as the “connective tissue”,“primer coat”,
etc. for the ongoing storyline.Many of
the characters introduced will pop back up, family dynasties will continue to
intertwine, and different regions will have their moment (or longer) in the
spotlight.Also, as we spend more time
in particular countries, I’m planning to more fully flesh them out,
historically, geographically and culturally.Next episode, we cover the remainder of Gaius Caesar’s Eastern
imperium.HINT:When Armenian rebels invite you up to the
city walls to “talk,” send a centurion in your place.And not your favorite one.

Friday, January 2, 2015

“Tigranes…marched
forth with an army of such huge proportions that he actually laughed heartily
at the appearance of the Romans present there.He is said to have remarked that, in cases where they came to make war,
only a few presented themselves, but when it was an embassy, many came.”- Cassius Dio, Rome, Book 36

“Pompey…announced
to his soldiers that Mithridates was dead…Upon this the army filled with joy and,
as was natural, gave itself up to sacrifices and entertainments, feeling that
in the person of Mithridates ten thousand enemies had died.”- Plutarch, The Life of Pompey